Book Review: Shades of War

Shades of War

By:  Sarah-Jane Lehoux

Publisher:  Mundania Press

Publish Date:  November 30, 2010

Format:  Paperback 247 pgs, 6" x 9"

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  2nd in Sevy series; 1st Book ~ Thief

Recommendation:  Yes, a fantasy read continuing with Sevy into a warring jungle, where the ghosts of past surface, in more ways than one.

Book Synopsis:
Sometimes the past can't be forgotten.  Sometimes the truth refuses to be buried.  And sometimes the dead won't stay dead.

It began as a simple request: Journey to the Northern Jungles and bring a wayward son back to the safety of his farm and family before the racial tension that is building between humans and dark elves erupts into civil war.  But life is never simple for Sevy, and she soon finds herself entangled in a bloody battle of good versus evil, love versus hate.

Old friends and enemies reunite, familial bonds are broken, and loyalty is tested.  And in the midst of the steamy, sultry jungles, the ghosts of a serial killer's victims come out to play.  Sevy, as petulant and irascible as ever, must overcome her personal demons in order to expose a madman and bring peace back to the kingdom.  But just how much of her sanity must she sacrifice to help her friends?  And how can she save anyone when she can't even save her own soul?

First Sentence:
Sally's pub, a dismal little dive located in the south-eastern quarter of Eloria, was as it had ever been: dank, run down, and saturated with the body odor of the city workers who made up the bulk of its clientele.

To Purchase:

Amazon Ordering   /   Barnes & Nobles   /   Mundania Press (all eformats & print)

My Thoughts and Summary:
Sevy, not having a soft spot for anyone, let alone kids and from Devenbourn, finds herself making the trip to Devenbourn with these desperate children, as that's where her love was from.  While visiting her lovers grave she is approached by his mother, requesting she stay, visit, and get to know Sevy more since she was a big part of her son's life for so long.  After finding out why their son never came home Didrianna asks Sevy to make the journey to bring home their youngest son Lon, who's in the Kings Army on his way to the heated war with the dark elves in the jungle.  They can't bare the loss of another son.  Sevy finds and faces many ghosts there.

Revik has finally convinced his wife, Yy'voury, to go on her first wander, through the jungle to visit Trel's relatives.  They find the village empty and being ransacked by humans.  What is going on?  Revik finds himself taken prisoner by humans blaming him for the mass human-slaughtering murder spree lately.  One they believe a dark elf has been seen doing.

Both Sevy and Revik will find themselves in the middle of a war between differences and unknowings.  Will these two be able to bring the two races together, to be friends like they are?  Or will this be where one of them will not return from?  Finding themselves the center of a war that should not be fought.

In this story we learn a great deal more of Sevy's past.  What happened to her family and how she became to be so hard-hearted in life.  Sevy is a chosen one by the ancestors in seeing them.  Even through so terrible the visions, and almost driving Sevy mad, this might be what's needed to help in the end.

Sarah-Jane goes dark with the happenings here.  There are many dark pasts and present happenings in the story.  A war that is created upon thoughts of a different race.  I did cringe at a few of the happenings, and felt for the characters with their history.  We see how damaged Sevy is, along with others.

We get to spend some time in Yy'voury's mind.  Which gives us a chance to see more of the Dark Elf ways and how her home is different from the group in the jungles.  We have old 'friends' that make reappearances here, which is a nice surprise.  And we make new friends while here as well.  Glor is an interesting character.  You have to meet this one to understand.  Really insightful, powerful, yet keeps the secrets.  Lon is new and nothing like his brother.  General Kye kind of reminded me tad of Glokta from Joe Abercrombie's First Law series, but he is more than that here as well with his own seedy mind.  Similar yet so different and a great character to hate.

This book has the fantasy feel to it.  One to lay back and enjoy for the journey Sevy makes, and learns about herself.  All the characters come to realizations about themselves and others by the end of this story.


**I read this book for my own enjoyment.
***This is a share of my personal thoughts of the book as I read it.